Daisy is reportedly close to a merger with IT solutions provider Wavenet.
As first reported by Sky News, Matthew Riley, Founder and Executive Chairman of Daisy Group, is said to be in the concluding phases of a merger agreement with Wavenet, a company that has been majority-owned by Australian financial firm Macquarie since 2021.
The deal will entail Daisy being demerged from Daisy Group and merged into Wavenet. Sky’s sources say the result could be a company valued at over £1 billion.
The combined business, which is set to be named Wavenet, will form a managed services provider boasting over 2,000 employees and over 20,000 UK enterprise clients, including prominent names such as Costain, the NHS, and Transport for London. Wavenet says this will make it the UK’s largest independent provider of managed IT services.
Philip Grannum, Chief Executive of Wavenet, told Sky News:
This deal brings together two prolific consolidators, making Wavenet the largest independent Managed Service & Security Provider for large SME & corporate customers. It provides both Daisy and Wavenet customers greater access to enterprise grade solutions combined with the very best customer service and gives fantastic career opportunities for our employees.”
Wavenet will continue to be led by Wavenet’s Executive Chairman Bill Dawson, while Riley is set to join its new board as a Non-Executive Director.
Riley has a reputation as a leading dealmaker in the telecoms world, with Daisy acquiring rival XLN Telecom for £210m in 2022. Daisy’s remarkable growth in recent years has made it the second-largest SME telecoms provider in the UK, trailing only BT Group.
The Wavenet/Daisy deal is the second £1 billion+ deal which Riley has facilitated, having recently finalised a £215 million acquisition of cloud comms provider 4Com.
The deal was allegedly backed by Macquarie, which will remain the new iteration of Wavenet’s largest shareholder. It will also be backed by debt financing from direct lender firm Ares.
Riley had yet to respond to Sky News’s request for comment, while Macquarie had declined to comment.
The deal is expected to be announced later this week.
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